WEST WINDSOR, N.J. (May 8, 2010) – The second-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology men's tennis team will look to capture its second Empire 8 title when it meets Ithaca College in the conference's championship match slated for Sunday, May 9 at the Mercer County Tennis Center in West Windsor, N.J. The Ducks downed No. 3 Nazareth College in today's semifinal, 5-0, while the Bombers bested No. 4 Nazareth College, 5-0. The winner of tomorrow's championship – set to begin at 1 p.m. – will receive the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Men's Tennis Tournament.
Fans wishing to attend tomorrow's match can take advantage of the Stevens Athletics fan bus departing from Jonas Hall at 11 a.m.
No. 1 Ithaca 5, No. 4 RIT 0
Ithaca's top-flight doubles tandem of senior Taylor Borda (Chester, N.J.) and junior Josh Rifkin (Ft. Wayne, Ind.) scored an 8-0 victory over senior John Traver (Clifton Park, N.Y.) and freshman Will Abisalih (Merrimac, Mass.), while sophomore Jimmy Newton (Andover, Mass.) and senior Danny Wolk (Potomac, Md.) earned an 8-0 sweep over RIT's Clayton Tontarski (Rochester, N.Y.) and Neville Bilimoria (Mumbai) in second-flight doubles.
Junior Dan Adelman (Hampton, Conn.) and freshman Josh Berggrun (Pepper Pike, Ohio) rounded out doubles action with an 8-5 triumph over senior John Albers (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and sophomore Larry Hall (Fairport, N.Y.).
Rifkin downed Traver 6-2, 6-1 in No. 1 singles, while Borda ousted Bilimoria, 6-2, 6-2, in No. 2 singles play.
No. 2 Stevens 5, No. 3 Nazareth 0
The Ducks set a program record with their 17th win of the season thanks to a 5-0 victory over Nazareth College in the Empire 8 semifinals. Junior Arik Zeevy and freshman Shota Tasaki headlined Stevens' doubles pairings with an 8-1 victory over freshmen Ryan McCormick (Rochester, N.Y.) and Josh Mulligan (East Syracuse, N.Y.).
Senior Piotr Rusinkiewicz and freshman Chris Rosensteel defeated junior Adam Landry (Macedon, N.Y.) and freshman Jeremy Mancus (Irvington, N.Y.) 8-4 in second-flight doubles, while junior Jason Ringstad and sophomore Gregory Klose notched an 8-4 third-flight doubles triumph over freshman Bret Beaver (Hudson, Ohio) and senior Steve Trobert (Jamesville, N.Y.).
With his win in second-flight doubles, Rosensteel set the single-season mark for individual doubles wins with 19. The East Windsor native, who captured his 26th singles win of the season in today's semifinal – also a program record – gave Stevens a 4-0 advantage with a 6-1, 6-0 No. 2 singles victory over Landry. Zeevy closed out play with a 6-0, 6-2, win over Trobert.
